Arsena McIntire with her premature baby, Alexandra. / Submitted photo

Arsena McIntire tells the story of how her newborn baby, Alexandra, was spirited away in 1994 in San Diego, Calif. / Dave Polcyn/News Journal

An age-advanced photo of Alexandra McIntire provided by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. / Submitted

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GALION — Last week’s rescue of three Cleveland women and a child has renewed the hope of a Galion native that she may one day see the return of the baby she lost nearly 19 years ago.

Arsena McIntire, now of Poplar Street in Mansfield, said her 8-month-old baby Alexandra McIntire vanished July 20, 1994, in San Diego, Calif.

Darrell Foxworth, a spokesman with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in San Diego, said Monday the case is still open and considered a missing child exploitation. In addition, Foxworth said the case was profiled on San Diego’s Most Wanted about a year ago.

When the news broke about the rescue of the Cleveland women, Arsena was at a neighbor’s apartment.

“I almost couldn’t breathe for a couple minutes and I kept watching it,” she said. “When I saw that, it actually gave me some hope.”

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children’s website states Alexandra, 19, was last known to be in the company of an adult female caregiver, who may have taken the child to South Africa. When Alexandra was last seen, she was 8 months old and had a surgical scar on the upper left side of her back, according to the website.

“It is believed that she was sold as part of an illegal adoption,” the website states. “The suspect is described as a white female, 5 feet, 4 inches tall with red hair and blue eyes.”

Charles Pickett, senior case manager at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children for the past 28 years, said he has worked on Alexandra McIntire’s case and two other abduction cases that gained national attention when Elizabeth Smart and Jaycee Dugard were later found alive.

Of Alexandra, he said, “At some time that child was in South Africa and I’m unsure if she is in the U.S. now.”

Pickett’s advice for people?

“Don’t write these kids off,” Pickett said. “We can bring these babies home together and identify people who prey on children and make sure they do not do it again.”

Arsena said she was serving in the Navy when her baby was born premature. The young mother sought assistance while the child was still hospitalized. The California Health & Human Services Office gave her a list of state-recommended daycare providers, including a woman who lived about a block away.

Arsena said the caregiver was from South Africa, with red hair and a British accent and married to an American.

After returning from a cross-country trip to get her fiance’s vehicle in Virginia, Arsena checked on the child.

“I stopped and saw her,” she said. “We still had our stuff in the car.”

That was the last time she saw her baby.

When she returned later, Arsena was told the caregiver had given the child to the woman’s brother who lived in a neighboring county, and he had taken the baby to South Africa. Arsena remained in contact with the caregiver by telephone, who told her that another family member would need the baby’s Social Security number and birth certificate for a passport to get her back home.

“I sent it to her. I was desperate at this point,” she said.

When the baby was not returned, she called the FBI.

“I still don’t know if she was really in South Africa,” Arsena said. “This is the stuff she was feeding me so I don’t know if she was ever there or is in the U.S.”

Arsena said she was told there was not enough evidence to prosecute the caregiver. An FBI agent later contacted her and did an age-enhanced photo of the baby to help the public identify her.